I watched Sunderland's controversial win over Hull City and here are four conclusions I drew

Sunderland returned to the top of the Championship with a 1-0 win over Hull City on Sunday afternoon.

Phil Smith was reporting on the game and here are his key Sunderland conclusions...

SUNDERLAND REGAIN CONTROL

Nobody could or would pretend that this was a dominant or perfect performance from Sunderland.

They edged the first half in terms of possession but Hull City were a threat on the break, their willingness to sit deep and burst forward slightly catching the visitors off guard. Hull then dominated the opening exchanges of the second half, striker Chris Bedia crashing an effort off the post shortly before Wilson Isidor surged clear from a corner to score the winner. Hull, not unreasonably, felt luck was also on Sunderland's side not just because of the referee's positioning for that goal but also because of his decision not to penalise Chris Mepham for a handball just before the interval. On another day, perhaps the result might have gone another way.

What was impressive from a Sunderland perspective, though, was how few opportunities they limited Hull to throughout the contest and particularly after their goal. There was still half an hour to play at the point Isidor audaciously dinked his effort over Ivor Pandur and yet Anthony Patterson did not have another save to make. Hull registered just two shots from inside the Sunderland box from that point until the final whistle, both headers from corners that flew well over the bar. Across the entire 90 minutes, Hull registered an expected-goals tally of just 0.49.

Régis Le Bris said afterwards that this is a sign of his team developing and learning, encouraged that they had learned from the difficult experiences at Plymouth Argyle and Watford when they had lost control of the game and ceded too many chances to their opponent.

"I really appreciated this second half. It was not perfect, at all, but the willingness was clear and they tried," he said.

"This is the first layer and if we can repeat this, we will have good results in the future."

This was not Sunderland at their fluid best but to dominate games away from home in the Championship is never easy. Here their defensive principles were firmly on show again and if that continues, they will continue to pick up points even if the luck isn't always entirely on their side.

SUNDERLAND'S CAREFUL PREPARATION PAYS OFF

Tim Walter revealed in his post-match press conference that he had received an apology from referee Bobby Madley after the game. Walter was incensed with Madley's positioning for the short corner from which Sunderland eventually scored, arguing that the referee had blocked the path of a pass and impeded his player as a result. Walter added that such a routine was a staple of his teams across his career and that Madley ought to have been better prepared. You could understand some of the frustration and indeed Madley twice found himself in Dan Neil's path at other stages of the game, at one stage pausing the contest as he made contact with the ball and the Sunderland midfielder.

Still, a little self reflection is required and some praise for Sunderland too. There was ample time for the Hull midfielder to play the ball after he gathered it, Madley by this stage well out of his path. There was also no need for Hull to have their final covering defender so high up the pitch, giving Isidor the space to show his impressive turn of pace. And it was notable that both Le Bris and Trai Hume afterwards said that they anticipated this routine from Hull, specifically devising their set up to counter it.

Hull conceded twice from their own corners against Sheffield United earlier in the season, and Sunderland sensed an opportunity. In a division of fine margins, little details can make a big difference.

SUNDERLAND MIGHT HAVE SOLVED THEIR STRIKER ISSUE

Ok, let's not get our hopes up too much. But Isidor's goal was reminiscent of Ross Stewart in his pomp, eating up the turf and leaving Cody Drameh (by no stretch one of the division's slowest full backs) trailing in his wake. The rest was pure quality, a little flick to set up the shot and then the chip to beat Pandur. Isidor isn't the finished article but he has pace, a goalscoring instinct and he's not bad at all when it comes to holding the ball up. When he was brought off towards the end of the game, Aaron Connolly came on to intelligently win fouls and slow the game down as his time required.

At some stage over the next week or so Eliezer Mayenda will return to the fold and his pace and willingness to press will add a strong option from the bench. In his pre-match press conference, Le Bris joked that he might soon have too many strikers. Dare we start to dream that Sunderland have turned the page on last season's woe?

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DAN BALLARD MIGHT HAVE TO BE PATIENT

Walter probably had a point in arguing Mepham handballed under pressure before the break, but that was one rare blemish in an otherwise exceptional display. Sunderland's man-for-man marking is a high risk strategy and particularly against a team with the kind of pace Hull have on the counter. Mepham's awareness, positioning and aerial dominance throughout the game was the platform on which this result was built. Dan Ballard's quality is undeniable but he is likely going to have to be patient as he recovers from an ankle injury.

It was an afternoon of strong performances across the board but credit is also due to Dan Neil not just for his role in Isidor's goal but his all-round play. He made some important interventions across the game in front of the back four and some lovely work on the ball might have yielded more on another day.